Japan executed on Friday former leader of doomsday cult Aleph, Shoko Asahara, and six other members that carried out a sarin gas attack on the Tokyo subway in 1995, killing 13 people. This is footage from inside the prison where they were hanged.
Japan is one of only two countries in G7 that still executes its worst criminalsFrom the outside, the Tokyo Detention House looks like any other tall, austere buildings native to Katsushika City. It is guarded only by a low wire fence and enjoys sprawling parks dotted with trees to blend in with the surrounding landscape.
Rare notes from inside the sterile centre confirm prisoners are often told only an hour before they are due to take the stage on the day of their execution - a decision the UN Committee against Torture claimed causes the families additional stress. READ MORE: How the world executes its worst criminals: Methods of capital punishment used around the world from public beheading and stoning to nitrogen gas and Chinese death vans
On June 8, 2008, the then-25-year-old rented a two-ton Isuzu Elf truck and drove it into a lunchtime crowd of pedestrians at the Akihabara shopping district, killing three people. It would be another 11 years before Kato would face his penalty in the Tokyo Detention House. There is no clear record of what happened on July 26, 2022 - but a rare witness testimony from the end of 2021 shed light on the conditions facing the condemned.
The man was then blindfolded and handcuffed with his hands behind his back. The blue curtains opened and an officer tied a noose around his neck, hanged from the ceiling, and aligned him with the trapdoor. Japan is one of only two G7 countries that still sentences its prisoners to death - the other being the United States - but it does so sparingly, and has not sent anybody to die since Kato in 2022. Three died on death row last year while awaiting the penalty.
But scope for rehabilitation was not mentioned in Justice Minister Yoshihisa Furukawa's decision, who told reporters Kato had shown a 'strong intent to kill'. Indeed such crimes do continue to occur, with the death penalty seemingly of limited use as a deterrent for criminals intent on committing atrocious acts of violence.
But behind the scenes, they also built an arsenal of chemical, biological and conventional weapons to carry out his vision of overthrowing the government to save the world from a doomsday he said was coming, which ended in the cult releasing deadly sarin gas in the Tokyo subway in a horrific attack that killed 13.
With the appeals unsuccessful, he was finally hanged at the Tokyo Detention House on July 6, 2018, along with six other cult members.Shoko Asahara, real name Chizuo Matsumoto on October 31, 2003 in Tokyo, Japan
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Inside the hellish arctic prison where Alexei Navalny met his deathPrisoners are made to stand outside without coats and those who fail to stand sill are then doused with cold water.
Read more »
Japan executes its worst criminals in secretive death penalty chamberJapan's worst criminals face their death inside a highly secretive execution room located inside a nondescript office block.
Read more »
Russian spies ‘visited Polar Wolf prison’ days before Navalny’s death and ‘disabled CCTV devices’Officers from the Russian intelligence service have been accused of visiting and disconnecting CCTV devices at the prison Navalny was being held in.
Read more »
Inside Thomas Kingston's life as King Charles pays tribute after death at 45The Royal Family are in mourning after the death of Lady Gabriella Kingston's husband, Thomas Kingston, who 'lit up the lives of all who knew him' before his unexpected death at 45
Read more »
Vermont Day Care Provider Sentenced to Prison for Infant's DeathA Vermont day care provider convicted of manslaughter in the death of an infant she was caring for in her home was sentenced on Tuesday to three to 10 years in prison. Stacey Vaillancourt was accused of sedating Harper Rose Briar with an antihistamine in 2019.
Read more »
‘I would not fly that plane’: Inside the Boeing crisis after whistleblower deathFormer Boeing employees and safety officials tell i the problems run deep at the plane manufacturer
Read more »